Handpicked News

Jeremy Hooper notices that conservative “values” groups like Focus on the Family and the National Organization of Marriage — who publicly argue they respect gay people but oppose their right to redefine the definition of marriage — are going out of their way to connection pedophilia to homosexuality:

The videos are titled “It Gets Better.” They are aimed at persuading kids that although they’ll face struggles and perhaps bullying for “coming out” as homosexual (or transgendered or some other perversion), life will get better. […] Can you imagine George Washington, Ronald Reagan, or any other president telling school children that it’s okay to be immoral and that they’ll eventually feel better about it? It’s disgusting. And it’s part of a concerted effort to persuade kids that homosexuality is okay and actually to recruit them into that “lifestyle.”

NEW YORK — Baby boomers heading into what used to be called retirement age are providing a 70 million-member strong market for legions of companies, entrepreneurs and cosmetic surgeons eager to capitalize on their “forever young” mindset, whether it’s through wrinkle creams, face-lifts or workout regimens. It adds up to potential bonanza. The market research firm Global Industry Analysts projects that a boomer-fueled consumer base, “seeking to keep the dreaded signs of aging at bay,” will push the U.S. market for anti-aging products from about $80 billion now to more than $114 billion by 2015.

At the northern end of Kenya’s Nairobi National Park, humans are coming to the rescue for baby elephants. Problem is, humans are also the reason why baby elephants need rescuing. An article in National Geographic‘s September issue profiles a nursery for elephants that have been orphaned mostly by poaching and human-animal conflict.

On its own, where you live isn’t enough to make you depressed. Personal circumstances and genes also play an important role in mental health, so an area that feels like a downer to one person may be home sweet home to another. That said, mental distress is unusually and persistently common in some states, whether due to economic troubles, lack of access to health care, or other factors.

Tehran, Iran (CNN) — The two U.S. hikers detained for two grueling years in Iran on spying charges have been sentenced to eight years in prison, state-run TV reported Saturday. Josh Fattal and Shane Bauer each received five years for espionage — specifically “cooperating with the American intelligence service” — and three years for illegal entry, the IRINN reported, quoting an “informed” judiciary source. They have 20 days to appeal their sentence, which was handed down by the Revolutionary Court, IRINN reported.